Scottish Centenary Tournament

Last updated 22 February 2004

Hintikka,E (2440) - Sterud,E (2425) [C04]
SCCA-100, 1984
[Notes by John Hawkes]

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Nc6 4.Ngf3 Nf6 5.e5 Nd7 6.Nb3 [6.Be2 f6 7.exf6 Nxf6 (7...Qxf6 8.Nf1 Bd6 9.Ne3 0-0 10.0-0 Qg6 11.c3!? Idea Nh4.) 8.0-0 Bd6 9.c4! is very strong. In a rare Pia Cramling CC game versus Backe, 1982-83, the continuation was: 9...0-0 10.c5 Bf4 11.g3!? Bh6 (11...Bxd2! )12.Nb3 Ng4? and Black was on the slippery slope. (>=12...Bxc1 )]

6...Be7 7.h4 [A World Championship game Estrin-Sloth now continued: 7.Bb5 a5 8.c3 a4 9.Nbd2 Nb6 10.0-0 Bd7 11.Qe2 0-0 12.Re1 Qe8 13.Bd3 f5!~~ ]

7...a5 8.a4 f6!? [Alternatively, 8...b6 9.Bg5 (9.c3 h6 10.Be3 Ncb8 11.Nc1 Ba6 12.Rh3 c5 13.Bb5 Qc8 14.Nd3 Kaliwoda-Veress, I Euro TT.; an immediate 9.Bb5!? is also possible.) 9...h6 10.Bxe7 Nxe7 11.h5 c5 12.Bb5 Qc7 13.0-0 Ba6 14.Bxa6 Rxa6 15.Qe2+/= Averbach-Zaitsev, USSR Championship, 1969.]

9.Bf4 fxe5 10.dxe5 0-0 11.g3 Nc5 12.Nxc5 Bxc5 13.Bd3 Qe8 14.Ng5 The attack begins.

14...h6 15.Nh7 Rf7 16.Qh5 Bd7 17.Bg6 Ne7 A remarkable transition is about to occur.

18.Bxh6! Bxf2+ 19.Ke2 Bxg3 20.Nf6+! Rxf6 21.Bxe8 Bxe8 It's better to win the exchange than the queen.

22.Qxe8+! Rxe8 23.exf6 gxh6 24.fxe7 Rxe7 25.Rag1 Rg7 26.c3 c6 27.Kf3 Bd6 28.Rxg7+ Kxg7 29.Rg1+ Kf7 The ending White was after; materially equal, but hopeless for Black!

30.Kg4! b5 31.Kh5 bxa4 32.Kxh6 a3 33.bxa3 Bxa3 34.Rf1+! Ke7 35.Kg6 Bb2 36.h5 Bxc3 37.h6 a4 38.h7 1-0